12 Years After Corruption Sentence, Former Providence Mayor Says He’ll Run Again

EAST PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) _ Former Providence Mayor Buddy Cianci is making a comeback bid to run Rhode Island’s capital city again, 12 years after being sent to prison for corruption.

Cianci announced his decision to run for mayor Wednesday on his radio show. He says he made the decision with “much soul-searching.” He says he knows he has baggage but people know who he is and what he’s accomplished.

Cianci was the city’s longest-serving mayor, serving 21 years and elected six times. He was twice forced to resign due to felony convictions, in 1984 for assaulting a man he believed was having an affair with his estranged wife, and in 2002, when he was sent to prison for racketeering conspiracy.